BEFORE THE

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

WASHINGTON, D.C.

__________________________________________

)

Application of )

)

 VIRGIN AMERICA INC. )

 ) Docket No. OST-2010-_____

for an exemption under 49 U.S.C. § 40109 )

to provide foreign scheduled air transportation )

of persons and mail between the United States )

and Canada. )

__________________________________________)

APPLICATION OF VIRGIN AMERICA INC.

FOR AN EXEMPTION AND DESIGNATION

TO PROVIDE FOREIGN SCHEDULED AIR TRANSPORTATION

Communications with respect to this document should be sent to:

David H. Pflieger, Jr.

 Senior Vice President & General Counsel

Allen Huang

 Associate General Counsel

Virgin America Inc.

555 Airport Blvd., Second Floor

Burlingame, CA 94010

(650) 762-7115 (phone)

(650) 762-7004 (fax)

dave.pflieger@virginamerica.com

allen.huang@virginamerica.com

March 18, 2010

Notice: Answers to this application would ordinarily be due on April 2, 2010. Virgin 

America Inc. requests expedited treatment of this Application and will poll the air carrier 

representatives served with this Application and notify the Department of the results.
1

BEFORE THE

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION

WASHINGTON, D.C.

)

Application of )

)

 VIRGIN AMERICA INC. )

 ) Docket No. OST-2010-_____

for an exemption under 49 U.S.C. § 40109 )

to provide foreign scheduled air transportation )

of persons and mail between the United States )

and Canada. )

__________________________________________)

APPLICATION OF VIRGIN AMERICA INC.

FOR AN EXEMPTION AND DESIGNATION

TO PROVIDE FOREIGN SCHEDULED AIR TRANSPORTATION

Virgin America Inc. (“Virgin America”), pursuant to 49 U.S.C. § 40109 and Subpart C of 

the Department’s Rules of Practice (14 C.F.R. Part 302), hereby applies for an exemption from 

49 U.S.C. § 41101 and designation under the U.S.-Canada Air Transport Agreement1

In support of this application, Virgin America states as follows:

authorizing 

it to provide scheduled foreign air transportation of persons and mail between a point or points in 

the United States and a point or points in Canada. Virgin America plans to initiate service in 

June 2010 with one roundtrip flight per day to Toronto, Canada, from each of Los Angeles 

International Airport and San Francisco International Airport.

1. Virgin America is a Delaware corporation in good standing with its principal 

place of business at 555 Airport Boulevard, Burlingame, California. Virgin America is a citizen 

of the United States as defined in 49 U.S.C. § 40102(a)(15) and has been found fit to provide 

 1 Air Transport Agreement between the Government of the United States of America and the Government of Canada 

(Mar. 12, 2007).
2

scheduled interstate air transportation of persons, property and mail. See Order 2007-5-11 and 

2007-8-17; and Letter from Susan L. Kurland, DOT Assistant Secretary for Aviation and 

International Affairs, to Virgin America Inc. in Docket OST-2005-23307 (determining that 

Virgin America remains a citizen of the United States) (Jan. 8, 2010). Virgin America requests 

that the Department take official notice of all information contained in this docket pursuant to 

Rule 24 of the Department’s Regulations.

2. Virgin America seeks an exemption authorizing it to provide scheduled foreign 

air transportation of persons and mail between a point or points in the United States and a point 

or points in Canada. Virgin America currently provides daily scheduled service between: (i) San 

Francisco and the following cities: Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Ft. Lauderdale, Seattle, 

Los Angeles, Orange County, San Diego and Las Vegas; (ii) Los Angeles and the following 

cities: Boston, New York, Washington, DC, Ft. Lauderdale and Seattle; and (iii) Las Vegas and 

New York.

3. As noted above, Virgin America will initially provide service on the following 

routes:

Los Angeles – Toronto: One nonstop daily flight and one daily through flight.

San Francisco – Toronto: One nonstop daily flight and one daily through flight.

4. Virgin America is fit to conduct this proposed foreign air transportation. As the 

Department found, in granting JetBlue authority to serve that airline’s first foreign market, the 

Dominican Republic:

JetBlue has previously been found to be a citizen of the United States and 

fit, willing and able to provide scheduled interstate air transportation of 

persons, property, and mail as a certificated air carrier under section 41102 

of Title 49 U.S.C. (See Order 2000-2-7.) The foreign air transportation 

services authorized here are not markedly different in terms of aircraft size 

or stage length from the carrier’s current scheduled interstate operations 

under its existing certificate authority. We, therefore, found that JetBlue is 
3

qualified to provide the proposed air transportation services for the period 

covered by the exemption.

Notice of Action Taken in Docket OST-2004-17265 (Mar. 18, 2004).

5. Virgin America accepts and will comply with the Department’s standard terms 

and conditions imposed on exemption authority for scheduled foreign air transportation.

6. Virgin America’s application for an exemption poses no environmental or energy 

issues. Approval of this application will not result in a near-term increase in fuel consumption of 

10 million gallons or more. Virgin America will operate these routes with Stage 3 compliant 

aircraft that are configured to carry 8 F and 141 Y passengers.

7. The addition of Virgin America’s well-known and well-received, high quality 

operations to and from Canada will provide additional competition, market development and 

high quality service to the traveling public in the U.S.-Canada market.

8. The authority sought herein is fully consistent with the Annex 1 of U.S.-Canada 

Air Transport Agreement, which provides that airlines of the United States shall be allowed to 

perform scheduled international air transportation “from points behind the United States via the 

United States and intermediate points to a point or points in Canada and beyond.”
4

WHEREFORE, for the foregoing reasons, Virgin America Inc. respectfully requests that 

the Department grant it an exemption from 49 U.S.C. § 41101, a designation, and such other 

additional relief as may be necessary in order to permit Virgin America Inc. to provide scheduled 

foreign air transportation of persons and mail between a point or points in the United States and a 

point or points in Canada.

Respectfully submitted,

David H. Pflieger, Jr.

 Senior Vice President & General Counsel

Allen Huang

 Associate General Counsel

Virgin America Inc.

555 Airport Blvd., Second Floor

Burlingame, CA 94010

(650) 762-7115 (phone)

(650) 762-7004 (fax)

dave.pflieger@virginamerica.com

allen.huang@virginamerica.com

March 18, 2010
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE

I hereby certify that a copy of the foregoing Application of Virgin America Inc. for an 

exemption was served this 18th day of March, 2010, via email transmission on the following 

persons:

Jeffrey Manley

Senior Advisor – Regulatory Affairs

United Air Lines, Inc.

1025 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Suite 1210

Washington, DC 20036

jeffrey.manley@united.com

Hershel Kamen

Vice President—International

 and Regulatory Affairs

Dan Weiss

Continental Airlines, Inc.

Government Affairs—8th Floor

1600 Smith Street, Dept. HQSGV

Houston, TX 77002

hkamen@coair.com

dan.weiss@coair.com

Alexander Van Der Bellen ,Jeff Morgan

Sametta C. Barnett

Delta Air Lines 

1212 New York Avenue, NW, Suite 200

Washington, D.C. 20005

Sascha.vanderbellen@delta.com

sametta.c.barnett@delta.com

Jeff.morgan@delta.com

Thomas E. Fosko

Vice President

Air Transport International LLC

2800 Cantrell Road

Little Rock, AR 72202

tom.fosko@airtransport.cc

Howard Kass

Vice President & Associate General

 Counsel

US Airways

1401 H Street, N.W., Suite 1075

Washington, D.C. 20006

howard_kass@usairways.com

Carl B. Nelson, Jr.

Associate General Counsel

American Airlines, Inc.

1101 Seventeenth Street, N.W., Suite 600

Washington, D.C. 20036

carl.nelson@aa.com

John L. Richardson

Counsel for Amerijet International

John L. Richardson, P.L.L.C.

555 13th Street, N.W.

Suite 420 West

Washington, D.C. 20004

jrichardson@johnlrichardson.com

John Palo

Vice President, Planning Military

 and Government

Evergreen International Airlines, Inc.

3850 Three Mile Lane

McMinnville, OR 97128

john.palo@evergreenairlines.com

charters@evergreenairlines.com

Malcolm L. Benge

Counsel for World Airways and North

 American Airlines

Zuckert, Scoutt & Rasenberger, L.L.P.

888 Seventeenth Street, N.W., Suite 700

Washington, DC 20006

mlbenge@zsrlaw.com

Pierre Murphy

Counsel for Brendan Airways, L.L.C. 

d/b/a USA 3000 Airlines and Arrow Air 

1200 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W.

Suite 590

Washington, D.C. 20036-6802

pmurphy@lopmurphy.com
2

Aaron Goerlich

Counsel for Allegiant Air and

 Ryan International Airlines

Garofalo Goerlich Hainbach PC

1200 New Hampshire Avenue, NW, Suite 800

Washington, D.C. 20036-6802

agoerlich@ggh-airlaw.com

Edward P. Faberman

Counsel for Frontier Airlines 

Wiley Rein LLP

1776 K Street, N.W.

Washington, DC 20006

efaberman@wrf.com

Marshall S. Sinick

Counsel for Alaska Airlines

 and Florida West International Airways

Squire, Sanders & Dempsey

1201 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Suite 500

Washington, D.C. 20004

msinick@ssd.com

Lisa Dunn

Counsel for TEM Enterprises/ Xtra Airways/

 Casino Express

331 7th Street

Elko, NV 89801

ldunn@xtraairways.com

Stephen A. Alterman

Counsel for Horizon Air

Meyers & Alterman

1220 Nineteenth Street, N.W.

Washington, D.C. 20036

cargoair@aol.com

Eric Christensen

Vice President, Planning

Skywest Airlines

444 S. River Road

St. George, UT 84770

echristensen@skywest.com

John S. Fredericksen

Vice President and General Counsel

MN Airlines, LLC dba Sun Country

 Airlines

1300 Mendota Heights Road

Mendota Heights, MN 55120

john.fredericksen@suncountry.com

Joanne W. Young

Counsel for Spirit Airlines

Kirstein & Young PLLC

1001 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.

Suite 600 South

Washington, DC 20004

jyoung@yklaw.com 

Thomas A. Gillies

Chief Operating Officer

Southern Air Inc.

117 Glover Ave.

Norwalk, CT 06850

Email: tgillies@southernair.com

William C. Evans, John R. Mietus, Jr.

Counsel for Centurion Air Cargo and Trade 

 Winds Airlines

Law Office of John Mietus, LLC

315 C Street, SE, Lower Level

Washington, DC 20003

bill@mietuslaw.com

john@mietuslaw.com

Esta Rosenberg, Chief

U.S. Air Carrier Licensing Division

Office of International Aviation

Department of Transportation

1200 New Jersey Avenue, S.E.

Washington, DC 20590

Esta.rosenberg@dot.gov

John M. Allen, Director

Flight Standards Service

Federal Aviation Administration

800 Independence Avenue, S.W., Room 821

Washington, D.C. 20591

john.allen@faa.gov
3

Jonathan B. Hill

Counsel for Hawaiian Airlines and JetBlue

Dow Lohnes 

1200 New Hampshire Avenue, N.W.

Suite 800

Washington, DC 20036-6802

jhill@dowlohnes.com

 Allen Huang
VERIFICATION

Pursuant to Title 18 United States Code Section 1001, I, David H. Pflieger, Jr., in my 

individual capacity and as the authorized representative of the applicant, have not in any manner 

knowingly or willfully falsified, concealed or covered up any material fact or made any false, 

fictitious or fraudulent statement or knowingly used any documents which contain such 

statements in connection with the preparation, filing or prosecution of this exemption 

application. I understand that an individual who is found to have violated the provisions of 18 

U.S.C. Section 1001 shall be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned not more than five 

years, or both.

Name: David H. Pflieger, Jr.

Date: March 18, 2010

Title: Senior Vice President & General Counsel

Virgin America Inc.